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ARM Holdings is taking the fight to Intel in the battle for domination in mobile computing, with CEO Warren East asserting the chip designer will hold a 40% market share in the sector within a few years. The booming smartphone and tablet market helped ARM increase its fourth-quarter sales by 21%, the company said Tuesday. East also predicted that Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system could compete effectively against Android in the tablet market because of consumers' familiarity with Microsoft software.

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Intel must continue to invest in the mobile-chip business even though it's losing money, Chief Financial Officer Stacy Smith says. "In five years, every device will need to connect. We have to make these investments to participate in these huge opportunities," Smith said.

Nokia wants to make major changes in the hardware designs for its Windows Phones, with design chief Marko Ahtisaari developing Lumia models that allow near-field communications chips to connect to external devices, he said in an interview. Ahtisaari also said Nokia might incorporate wireless charging into its smartphones and that Microsoft was working closely with the cellphone-maker to ensure that software and hardware details match up.

Mobile processors are becoming a big revenue generator for graphics-chip maker Nvidia, with mobile-chip sales predicted to hit $20 billion within the next four years. Share price increased 5.5% after the company's CEO revealed the revenue prediction.

Intel, long considered a tech industry bellwether, is losing shareholder confidence as competitors, such as ARM Holdings, are taking the mobile-chip market by storm. That's despite robust earnings and Intel's promise to deliver mobile-device chips this year. Competitor AMD is dealing with similar challenges as well as a leadership shake-up.